Trade deficit registers moderate decline
Greece’s trade deficit posted a 5.5 percent decline in the first 11 months of last year compared with the same period in 2011, according to figures released on Friday by Eurostat in Brussels.
The Greek trade balance registered a deficit of 19 billion euros, down from 20.1 billion euros in the January-November 2011 period.
The data from the European Union’s statistics agency show that Greek exports grew by 19 percent in the year to November, climbing from 20.5 billion a year earlier to 24.5 billion, while imports registered a 7 percent decline to fall from 43.5 billion to 40.6 billion euros.
Imports in Greece have been in decline over the last three years due to the considerable slump in consumption, which is also driving local companies toward becoming more extrovert, which also bolsters the country’s exports.
The highest trade surplus in the EU was once again recorded in Germany (174.6 billion euros), followed by the Netherlands (46 billion) and Ireland (39.9 billion). The highest deficits were registered by the United Kingdom (152.9 billion euros), France (75.2 billion), Spain (30 billion) and Greece.
